Music & Ma | The Language between Piano and Sadō

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Category: Events Calendar

Date and Time

• Saturday, Sep 26, 2026  1:30pm - 4pm

Location

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Details

To awaken the senses, all you have to do is listen. This multi-sensory afternoon explores the connection between music and mindfulness through a live performance and talk by acclaimed Japanese pianist Dr. Makiko Hirata, paired with a traditional tea ceremony led by Omotesenke tea practitioner Ms. Sachiko Okazoe.

Throughout her career, Dr. Hirata has championed music as a source of healing and connection. She considers music a universal language—one that can synchronize our breath and even brainwaves, reminding us that our well-being is inseparable from that of those around us. Silence, too, has a profound role to play. It grounds us in the here and now, inviting us to slow down, and recognize our interconnectedness. Like yin and yang, sound and silence exist in a complementary relationship, creating space for presence, reflection, and connection.

The Japanese tea ceremony, or chanoyu, similarly invites a heightened awareness of the present moment. More than simply the preparation and serving of tea, it is an art form shaped by more than 500 years of tradition, cultivating mindfulness through graceful, intentional movements and an appreciation for beauty in everyday rituals.

Following the tea ceremony, Dr. Hirata will present a performance and talk exploring the healing power of music and the transformative act of listening. Through works by Kōsaku Yamada, Claude Debussy, Johannes Brahms, and others, she will consider music as an innately human practice that transcends cultural and linguistic boundaries while fostering empathy, emotional well-being, and connection.

Together, the tea ceremony and musical performance invite us to consider the value of pause, presence, and connection in an age shaped by AI, speed, and efficiency. What might ma, alongside the Western conception of music as the “art of time,” reveal about the importance of slowing down and making space for one another?

The program concludes with freshly prepared matcha and sweets, offering guests an opportunity to linger in the experience through conversation and cultural exchange with Dr. Hirata, the tea practitioners, and fellow attendees.

Program Schedule

*Subject to change

• 1:00 PM | Doors Open
• 1:30 PM | Opening Remarks
• 1:40 PM | Tea Ceremony Demonstration
• 1:50 PM | Performance & Talk by Dr. Makiko Hirata
• 3:30 PM | Q&A and Networking (Matcha tea and sweets served)
• 4:00 PM | Closing Remarks